Promotion standardization has been the subject
of intense academic debate and research for over four decades (Elinder
1961; Fatt 1967; Ryans 1969; Harvey 1993; James and Hill 1991; Onkvisit
and Shaw 1999; Shao, Shai and Shao 1992; Shoham 1995; etc.), without resolution
(Onkvisit and Shaw 1999). Underlying the debate is the issue of effectively
balancing the economic benefits gained through standardized strategies
and tactics with the performance gains achieved when adapting to local
markets (Baalbaki and Malhotra 1993, 1995; Jain 1989; Levitt 1983; Ozomer
and Prussia 2000; Szymanski, Bharadwaj and Varadarajan 1993). Researchers
subscribing to a standardized marketing approach argue that the movement
toward global markets, driven in part by global communication, travel,
etc. has created homogenized global market segments (Eger 1987). A globally
homogenized customer base along with technological advancements allows
managers an opportunity to leverage their promotional programs globally,
capturing substantial cost savings. For example, Elinder (1961) argues
that a centrally developed international promotional campaign with minor
modifications, such as translation of copy into the local language, would
be effective in a world where consumer differences were diminishing. However,
other researchers theorize that for a firm to fully maximize profits it
must cater to the specific target markets within each country, thus adapting
its promotional campaigns.
The issue of standardization and adaptation
of promotional campaigns has begun to receive increased attention by practitioners
and academics partly due to the communication revolution fueling globalization
(e.g., Culter, Thomas and Rao 2000; Hu and Griffith 1997; Onkvisit and
Shaw 1999; Sirisagul 2000). Promotion standardization is a determination
of the degree to which the underlying elements of the firm’s promotional
campaign can be standardized. Marketing managers are confronted with a
number of critical decision points relating to the development of their
promotional campaigns, such as advertising message, packaging, etc. (Kotler
1986; McDaniel and Baker 1977). It is the culmination of these decisions,
simultaneously considered independently and holistically, that determines
the overall degree of promotion standardization.
While researchers have spent a great deal of
time exploring the issue of promotional standardization, most have yet
to empirically examine the critical influencing factors and their specific
impact on individual promotional elements. Rather, most studies of have
focused on the aggregate construct of promotion standardization, thus providing
relatively limited insights to advance the field. Here, it is suggested
that for academics and practitioners to develop a greater understanding
of the intricacies of standardization/adaptation of promotional strategy,
a more detailed focus needs to be undertaken. Specifically, researchers
may wish to develop a generalized model examining the factors influencing
the standardization/adaptation of advertising message, advertising theme,
package size, package color, product price, sales promotion, etc. Through
an in-depth analysis of the factors influencing specific promotional elements
we may gain a greater understanding of this important issue. |
